“Honey is intrinsically kosher,” noted Amina Harris, executive director of the Honey and Pollination Center at UC Davis’ Robert Mondavi Institute for Food and Wine Science.

That makes it a perfect, and symbolic, ingredient for such celebrations. Since Moses’ day, honey has represented agricultural abundance. For Passover, honey sweetens kugels, glazes strawberries and accents savory dishes.

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“I make a cheesecake with a ground almond crust, honey, cinnamon and butter,” Harris said. “(Honey) is great for fruit tarts of all kinds.”

Saturday, the Honey Center hosts its second annual Pollination Day as part of UC Davis’ Picnic Day. At the Honey Center, families are invited to taste varietal honeys, dress up like busy bees for photos and observe real bees up close.

“We had so many people line up for tastings last year, we decided to double our tasting stations,” Harris said. “We’ll sell local honey (including the Honey Center’s own UC Davis honey) and do lots of family activities. It will be a lot of fun.”

Recent perils to our bee population have made consumers more aware of this important insect. Honeybees pollinate more than 130 California crops, including almonds, California’s largest agricultural export. More than 780,000 acres of almonds grow in California, and for pollination, they need an estimated 1.6 million hives, more than 60 percent of the nation’s total.

Colony Collapse Disorder, the often puzzling malady that kills honeybees, has taken a heavy toll.

“We’ve had 30 percent loss (of the hives) every single year,” Harris said.

Concern over the collapse disorder has prompted widespread concern over bees and bumped up honey sales at record high prices.

According to the American Beekeeping Federation, national honey production reached 149 million pounds last year, up 5 percent from 2012. Prices edged up to $2.12 wholesale a pound.

On average, we eat about 1.5 pounds per person, three times as much honey as we ate 20 years ago.

“I have absolutely seen a surge in the popularity of honey,” said Marie Simmons, author of “Taste of Honey” (Andrews McMeel, $19.99, 192 pages) and a spokeswoman for the National Honey Board. “I think it’s for a variety of reasons, including perhaps the back-to-the-earth movement, farmers markets, comfort foods (and) yearning for hearth and home, unprocessed foods and natural foods.”

The collapse disorder goes far beyond California as a worldwide problem, she added.

“Wide reporting in the media has brought much-needed attention to the issue and an awareness of the importance of the honeybee – especially since honeybees provide a vital benefit to agriculture through pollination of many food crops. This in turn has manifested itself in passion for honey as a pure food.”

Added Harris, “People ... think by eating more honey, they will help the bees. That’s fine. But what they really need to do is (to) stop spraying pesticides and herbicides in their own gardens. People know bees are important, but they don’t want them in their yards. That’s a major disconnect; people don’t realize how they contribute to bee health.”

Honey still represents just a taste of America’s sweet tooth, Harris noted. “The average consumer eats 47 pounds of sugar a year and 35.1 pounds of corn syrup. So, there’s lots of room for honey growth, sadly.”

With new focus on an ancient food, consumers are rediscovering honey, particularly varietals derived from different flowers. Pollen sources give distinctive flavors to the bee’s final product.

Orange blossom and clover are the most familiar varietals. But there are many more, such as avocado, buckwheat, eucalyptus, pomegranate and wildflower. The National Honey Board lists more than 300 varietals.

Although millions of bees pollinate almonds, almond honey is rarely sold to the public due to a bitter aftertaste, Harris said. “And you’ve got to watch labeling. (Recently), I saw a ‘truffle honey’ that was actually truffle oil-infused. When was the last time you saw a honeybee go underground to pollinate truffles?”

As an ingredient, different honeys change the way the final dish tastes.

“Varietal honeys are appearing in both farmers markets and on the shelves in local grocery store chains,” Simmons said. “Many chefs are featuring honey on their menus, often mentioning a particular varietal.”

She said she prefers to match certain flavor profiles with specific foods.

“Light-colored floral honey I love with cream, butter and other mildly sweet dishes, like drizzled on a scoop of vanilla ice cream or over a dish of vanilla yogurt. At the other end of the spectrum, I am very fond of deep, dark amber-colored and robustly flavored honeys, especially as an ingredient in barbecue sauce or used to sweeten chocolate pudding or brownies.

“I also love honey with the bright tang of herbs such as mint, fennel or sage, drizzled over a slice of cheese and served as a sweet/savory dessert.”

This variation on traditional Guatemalan candy features the sweetness of milk and honey.

Recipe courtesy National Honey Board.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup honey

4 cups powdered milk

1 1/2 cans condensed milk, sweetened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup powdered sugar

Cornstarch, for kneading

INSTRUCTIONS

Place all of the ingredients except the cornstarch in a stand or hand mixer with a paddle attachment and mix on low for 30 seconds. Change the mixer to medium speed and mix for approximately 1 minute or until mix forms a stiff consistency.

Place the sugar mixture on a clean work surface dusted with a bit of cornstarch. Knead the dough for a minute with your hands, using cornstarch in order to prevent sticking.

Roll or pipe the mixture into 24 desired shapes, dusting with a little cornstarch as you go.

Wrap the shapes in cellophane or other desired wrapping. Makes about 24 pieces.

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or a braising pan. When it is hot enough to sizzle a piece of onion, add the onion, Moroccan spice blend, turmeric and cinnamon. Cook, stirring, until the onions are translucent.

Add the lamb and sprinkle with the salt and a generous grinding of pepper. Cook the meat, turning, for about 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add the tomatoes and chicken broth and heat to boiling. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 30 minutes. Add the figs and carrot. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes longer, or until the meat is tender.

Stir in the honey and lemon. If there is too much liquid, turn the heat to high and boil for about 5 minutes, or until the liquid is reduced. Add more salt and pepper if needed. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.

Use whatever seasonal fruit is best, advises Laura Frankel, executive chef of Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership in Chicago. Frankel bought an inexpensive manual ice shaver to make the “snow.” You can also make the ice by pulsing ice cubes in a blender or food processor. Some refrigerators feature a setting to dispense finely crushed iced.

INGREDIENTS

2 small apples, cored, cut into julienne

2 cups strawberries, sliced

2 cups blueberries

1/3 cup honey

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons lemon zest

7 cups shaved ice

Seeds (arils) from 1 pomegranate

1/4 cup thinly sliced mint

INSTRUCTIONS

Place all the fruit in a mixing bowl with the honey and lemon juice and zest. Mash the fruit just a bit with a potato masher. Allow the fruit to macerate (marinate and break up just a bit), 1 hour. Distribute the ice among 10 dessert glasses or bowls. Pour the fruit and juice over the ice. Garnish with pomegranate arils and mint.

This is easy to make in large quantities for entertaining. Feel free to change the amounts of the salad ingredients or to add other dried fruits as you wish. Make ahead: The salad, minus the toasted almonds, tastes better after a day’s refrigeration so that the flavors can meld.

Note: Toast the almonds in a small, dry skillet over medium-low heat, shaking them often to avoid scorching. Cook for a few minutes, until lightly browned and fragrant. Cool completely.

For the salad: Combine the quinoa and water in a medium saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low; cover and cook for about 15 minutes or until all of the water is absorbed, watching carefully near the end to avoid overcooking or scorching the bottom. Uncover and fluff with a fork, then transfer to a large mixing bowl to cool.

Meanwhile, combine the dried apricots and currants in a heatproof bowl. Cover them with just-boiled water to plump them up; drain after 10 to 12 minutes, then add the fruit to the quinoa along with the scallions.

For the dressing: Combine the lime juice, honey, oil, the teaspoon of salt and pepper to taste in a liquid measuring cup, whisking until emulsified. Stir in the zest, then pour into the quinoa mixture and toss to incorporate.

(At this point, the salad can be refrigerated for 1 to 2 days in advance.)

When ready to serve, mix in the toasted almonds. Line a platter with lettuce leaves, then spoon the quinoa salad over the leaves. Scatter the feta over the top, if using, or serve alongside.